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| Click photo to see comparison shots taken by the Sigma DP1 and the Panasonic DMC-LX2. |
No and yes! When both the LX2 and DP1 were focused on a flower arrangement 11.8 inches from the camera (the DP1's close focusing limit) and the LX2 was set to its widest focal length, the DP1 delivers much shallower depth of field than the LX2. (see photo A, closeup B and closeup C). However, at a typical portrait distance of six feet from the camera, the DOF difference between the cameras (LX2 set to f/2.8, the DP1 set to f/4) is far less obvious and details in distant backgrounds appear very similar.
The depth of field advantage (and therefore control) for the DP1 is thus limited to objects fairly close to the camera (such as a head shot taken three feet from the camera) up to its close focusing limit of 11.8 inches.
However, after that, the close focusing capability of cameras such as the LX2 (set to its widest focal length) deliver much shallower depth of field (see photo G). Finally, with cameras such as the Nikon P50 or Panasonic DMC-LX2 you can also zoom in to crop your subject, thereby increasing the focal length and decreasing depth of field. However, since aperture also changes you loose the brightness advantage and have to resort to a slower shutter speed, plus a smaller aperture increases depth of field but doesn't fully cancel the zoom advantage. The LX2 also has optical image stabilization so you can set a slower shutter speed to offset the loss of light without significantly increasing camera blur.
Bottom line? In our opinion, the shallower depth of field provided by the longer focal length lens of the DP1 (needed to accommodate the larger sensor) is limited in scope, and offset by the DP1's f/4 aperture and uninspiring close focus distance. However, we noticed an advantage when shooting headshot-style portraits, but couldn't see a visible difference in DOF when shooting group shots or subjects more than 6 feet from the camera. Now, if the DP1 had a closer-focusing zoom lens with image stabilization, it would be an entirely different story.
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